Ball exerciser and method of using the same

ABSTRACT

The exercise apparatus of the invention is comprised essentially of a substantially spherically shaped ball having a diameter of at approximately eighteen to twenty four inches. A support structure supports the ball so that it is rotatable in substantially any direction. The ball is preferably positioned at least waist high to a person wishing to exercise using said ball. To exercise, the person places his or her hands on opposite sides of the ball and moves them back and forth as the ball rotates about a vertical axis. Alternatively, the person can move his or her hands up and down or in substantially any direction while rotating the ball. Using a variable resistance means, the amount of force needed to rotate the ball can be adjusted so as to increase or decrease the workout. The ball can be used alone or can be positioned in front of a stationary workout apparatus such as a treadmill to be used simultaneously therewith.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed toward an exercise device and moreparticularly, toward an improved exercise device and method that offersthe option of a combined aerobic and anaerobic workout for both thelower and upper body.

Physical fitness and exercise have been and continue to be veryimportant aspects of people's lives. To aid people reach their goalswith regard to cardio fitness, numerous types of exercise devices arecurrently available. For example, treadmills, stationary bicycles, skimachines, rowing machines, and stair climbers are just a few of the morepopular devices.

Many of the above described exercise devices are designed primarily forthe legs. Rowing machines, of course, also provide exercise for theupper body although they are normally designed for specific musclegroups. It is also known to provide some stationary exercise devicessuch as ski machines with moveable handles for exercising ones arms.Such handles, however, provide only for monotonous forward and backmovement.

Weightlifting is yet another form of exercise and conditioning tool usedby many who are concerned with maintaining their health and a desiredlevel of fitness. To aid in this endeavor, free weights as well as manymachines are available that exercise and strengthen various muscles,either individually or simultaneously.

Devices that combine a cardio workout with muscle toning are also verypopular. For example, elliptical machines provide an aerobic workout aswell as upper body strengthening. However, because these machines areconstructed in such a way that the portion of the machine providing thecardio workout is tied into the muscle toning portion of the machine,the exerciser is forced into always combining the two types of workouts.

Therefore, a need exists for an exercise device that gives the exerciserthe option of an aerobic workout, an anaerobic workout, or a combinationof the two and which provides the user with the ability to vary themuscle groups being worked.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is designed to overcome the deficiencies of theprior art discussed above. It is an object of the present invention toprovide an exercise device that provides a combined aerobic andanaerobic workout.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an exercisedevice that provides an exerciser with the options of a cardio workoutcombined with muscle toning, a cardio workout, or muscle toning.

In accordance with illustrative embodiments demonstrating features andadvantages of the present invention, there is provided an exercisedevice that is comprised essentially of a substantially sphericallyshaped ball having a diameter of approximately eighteen to twenty fourinches. A support structure supports the ball so that it is rotatable insubstantially any direction. The ball is preferably positioned at leastwaist high to a person wishing to exercise using said ball. To exercise,the person places his or her hands in various positions as desired suchas on opposite sides of the ball and moves them back and forth to rotatethe ball about a any axis. Alternatively, the person can move his or herhands up and down or in substantially any direction while rotating theball. Using a variable resistance means, the amount of force needed torotate the ball can be adjusted so as to increase or decrease theworkout. The ball can be used alone or it can be positioned in front ofa stationary workout apparatus such as a treadmill to be usedsimultaneously therewith.

Other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be readilyapparent from the following detailed description of a preferredembodiment thereof taken in conjunction with the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there are shown in theaccompanying drawings forms that are presently preferred; it beingunderstood that the invention is not intended to be limited to theprecise arrangements and instrumentalities shown.

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view a first embodiment of the inventionshowing the same being used in combination with a treadmill;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of a stand that forms a part of thefirst embodiment of present invention;

FIG. 3 is a partial front elevational view of the stand of the firstembodiment of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 illustrates the pivotable nature of the stand of the firstembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the first embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 6 is an exploded view of the base of the stand shown in theforegoing figures, and FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectionalrepresentation of a second embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein like reference numeralshave been used throughout the various figures to designate likeelements, there is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 a first embodiment of anexercise device constructed in accordance with the principles of thepresent invention and designated generally as 10.

The exercise device 10 of the present invention essentially includes asubstantially spherically shaped ball 12 which preferably has a diameterof between 12 and 36 inches but preferably between 18 to 24 inches. Theball 12 may be made of substantially any material and can be eithersolid or hollow. Alternatively, and for the reasons discussed more fullybelow, the ball may be partially or completely filled with particulatematerial such as sand or magnetically attractable metal fillings or thelike.

The ball 12 is mounted so that it can be manually rotated utilizing aperson's hands. Preferably, the ball can be rotated in any direction. Aswill become apparent, however, certain benefits can be obtainedutilizing the present invention if the ball 12 is mounted to berotatable about only a vertical axis or about only a horizontal axis.Again, however, it is preferred that the ball 12 be mounted for rotationabout at least two orthogonal axes.

One example of a support structure 14 for supporting the ball 12 isshown most clearly in FIG. 2. It must be understood, however, that thisis by way of example only and essentially any structure that willsupport the ball 12 for rotation about various axes could also be usedwith the present invention.

The support structure 12 includes a vertically extending post 16 whichis attached at its bottom to a horizontally extending leg 18 having feet20 and 22 secured at either end thereof. While the feet 20 and 22 areshown to be relatively short, it will be understood that the length ofthese feet can be increased if further support is needed. As shown mostclearly in FIG. 6, the length of the leg 18 can be extended if neededutilizing bolts 24 and 26 that extend through appropriate openings inthe telescoping leg 18. Similarly, the height of the post 16 can beadjusted by removing bolt 28, moving the post 16 up or down over thetelescoping portion 30 and reinserting the bolt 28 through theappropriate openings 32 and 34 in the posts 16 and 30.

Extending forwardly of the post 16 is a horizontal bar 36. The bar 36passes beneath the ball 12 and extends upwardly at the forward endthereof as shown at 38 to terminate in a plate 40 which carries a rollerball 42. The roller ball 42 is mounted for free rotation on the plate40. Although only one roller ball 42 is shown, it should be readilyapparent that more than one roller ball may be use if additional supportis required.

The forward portion and/or the sides of the ball 12 could be supportedin a manner similar to the roller ball 42 at the forward portion of theball. It is preferred. however, to utilize a pair of curved rollers suchas shown at 44 and 46 that are journaled onto the frame 48. The curvedrollers 44 and 46 are shaped so as to fit around a portion of thecircumference of the ball 12 and are arranged so that the roller 44 liesjust above the center line of ball 12 while the roller 46 lies justbelow the center line. The frame 48 carrying the rollers 44 and 46 is,itself, mounted for rotation about the horizontal axis 50 to the top ofthe vertical support beam 16 thereby allowing the frame 48 and therollers 44 and 46 to rotate as shown in FIG. 4. A weight 51 may beprovided to bias the frame 48 into a vertical position with rollers 44and 46 aligned vertically.

In order to provide a means for adjusting the amount of resistancerequired to move the ball 12, the rollers 44 and 46 are linked togetherthrough the use of a belt 52 that passes around pulleys 54 and 56associated with the rollers 44 and 46. A second belt 58 extends betweenpulley 60 and pulley 62. Pulley 62 is connected to the shaft of aresistance device 64 which can be manually controlled by turning thedial 66. The resistance device 64 may take substantially any form andmerely puts more or less resistance on the ability of the pulley 62 torotate as the dial 66 is turned. Devices of this type are well known inthe exercise art. They are frequently used, for example, with stationarybicycles to increase or decrease the tension on the pedals.

The exercise ball device shown in FIGS. 2-5 can be used by itself. Thatis, a person wishing to exercise using the ball can simply utilize thesame in the manner to be described hereinafter. Alternatively, theexercise ball 12 can be positioned in front of a stationary exercisedevice such as a treadmill 68 as shown in FIG. 1. It should beunderstood that this is by way of example only as the device 10 could bepositioned in front of a ski machine, an elliptical walker, a steppingmachine or substantially any other similar type of device.

Depending on the exercise desired, the ball 12 is preferably positionedvertically at least at the position of the user's knees. In someexercises, the ball 12 may be positioned as high as the person'sshoulders or possibly even higher. It is envisioned, however, that mostexercises will be performed with the ball located somewhere between theperson's waist and shoulders.

In use, the person exercising will place the palm and fingers of his orher hands substantially anywhere on the surface of the ball such as, forexample, on opposite sides of the ball 12. From that position, theperson can then rotate the ball by moving, for example, his or her righthand up while moving the left hand down and then reversing theoperation. That is, the person's hands will be moving up and down whilerotating the ball. In another exercise, the ball 12 can first be rotated90° about the axis 50 as shown in FIG. 4 so that the rollers 44 and 46are arranged vertically. The person exercising can then place his or herhands on the left and right sides of the ball and move his or her armsforward and back in a manner similar to the movement of the poles in askiing machine. Since the ball 12 is mounted for rotation insubstantially any direction, numerous other variations of movements ofthe hands and arms can be performed. And the amount of resistancerequired to rotate the ball 12 can be adjusted by turning the dial 66.

In an alternate embodiment of the invention as show diagrammatically inFIG. 7, the support structure 114 for the ball 112 has an upper surfacethat is essentially bowl shaped. The size and shape of the bowl isselected so that the ball 112 closely fits therein. The upper surface ofthe bowl support may either be very smooth to allow the ball to slideand rotate therein or it may be provided with a number of ball bearingsor the like such as shown at 142. The ball 112 may be solid or may be inthe form of a spherical shell. In this latter form, the ball may bepartially or completely filled with a granular material 200 such as sandor the like. Changing the amount of sand, as desired, can change theforce needed to exercise using the device.

The granular material 200 may also be a magnetically susceptiblematerial such as iron filings or the like. In this way one or moremagnets 202 can be mounted in or near the support 114 to influence themagnetic particles 200 within the ball. The magnets 202 will have aneffect on the forces needed to rotate the ball 112. If electromagnetsare used as the magnets 202, the forces on the magnetic material 200and, as a result, the forces on the ball 112 can be adjusted by varyingthe voltage applied to the coils of the electromagnets.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from the spirit or essential attributes thereof andaccordingly, reference should be made to the appended claims rather thanto the foregoing specification as indicating the scope of the invention.

1. An exercise method comprising: providing a substantially sphericallyshaped ball; mounting said ball for rotation about at least one axis;positioning said ball at a position which is at least about knee high toa person wishing to exercise using said ball; placing the palm andfingers of a least one hand on the surface of said ball and, manuallyrotating said ball about said at least one axis.
 2. The exercise methodas claimed in claim 1 wherein said ball is mounted for rotation abouttwo orthogonal axes.
 3. The exercise method as claimed in claim 1further including the step of placing the palm and fingers of both handson the surface of said ball and manually rotating said ball.
 4. Theexercise method as claimed in claim 3 wherein the step of manuallyrotating said ball includes repeatedly rotating said ball in alternatingdirections.
 5. The exercise method as claimed in claim 1 wherein saidball is at least approximately eighteen inches in diameter.
 6. Theexercise method as claimed in claim 1 wherein said ball is locatedadjacent a stationary leg exercising apparatus and wherein said ball ismanually rotated while exercising ones legs.
 7. The exercise method asclaimed in claim 1 wherein said mounting means includes for resistingthe free rotation of said ball.
 8. The exercise method as claimed inclaim 1 wherein said ball is in the form of a spherical shell at leastpartially filled with a granular material.
 9. The exercise method asclaimed in claim 8 wherein said granular material is a magneticallysusceptible material.
 10. The exercise method as claimed in claim 9wherein said mounting means includes means for resisting the freerotation of said ball, said means for resisting including magnet meanscarried by said mounting means.
 11. An exercise apparatus comprising: asubstantially spherically shaped ball having a diameter of at leasttwelve inches; means for mounting said ball so that it is rotatableabout at least one axis; means for positioning said ball at a positionwhich is at least about knee high to a person wishing to exercise usingsaid ball.
 12. The exercise apparatus as claimed in claim 11 whereinsaid means for mounting mounts said ball for rotation about twoorthogonal axes.
 13. The exercise apparatus as claimed in claim 11further including means for preventing the free rotation of said ball.14. The exercise apparatus as claimed in claim 13 wherein saidpreventing means is adjustable so that the amount of resistance againstrotation of said ball can be adjusted.
 15. The exercise apparatus asclaimed in claim 11 wherein said ball is in the form of a sphericalshell at least partially filled with a granular material.
 16. Theexercise apparatus as claimed in claim 15 wherein said granular materialis a magnetically susceptible material.
 17. The exercise apparatus asclaimed in claim 16 wherein said mounting means includes means forresisting the free rotation of said ball, said means for resistingincluding magnet means carried by said mounting means.